No One Lives is a sadistic and brutal horror-thriller that puts the audience to the test with its pessimistic and nihilistic tone and its appalling twists. It starts with an apparently normal couple of Betty and Driver driving across the land as they run into a gang of murderous highway robbers headed by Hoag. The members of the gang plot abducting the rich couple and it goes out of control when the gang members expose a secret. Driver, a victim in the beginning, turns out to be a frightening avenger of revenge as he proves to be the man who murdered a lot of people in the past. The plot and the invasion of cruel violence make the movie leave the viewers on the edge of their seat every single minute, as they are left wondering who those real monsters are.
The movie is gritty, uncompromising, and with harsh cinematography and a disturbing score, it increases its feeling of dread. The characters are battered and morally questionable with each of them representing aspects of brutality and survival. The visual style of director Tyler Shields underlines the desolation of the scenery and the gloom of these characters, and all the brutality is close and immediate. The production design and the special effects are unsparing, creating the impression of disorganization and violence. Although the movie is incredibly violent, it also addresses the issues of the deceit, ethics, and the masks that humans put in order to conceal the real identity.
The part that resonated most with me was that No One Lives compels the audience to deal with the brutal side of humanity and the superficiality of civilization that in most cases hides anarchy. It is a gut flawless feeling that made me feel upset and yet fascinated because it unlayers the layers of violence and deceit. Its unstopping violence might be too much at times, but the film ends up being a sharp wake up call of the primitiveness that is beneath the veneer of civilized existence and a thought provoking and memorable experience.
